Comments on: almond macaroon torte with chocolate frosting

By: Jeff

Jeff — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 00:37:29 +0000

I made this twice last week- the first was a test run before my wife and I hosted our parents for Passover. The first time through I followed the recipe very closely and while it turned out totally delicious and was consumed within hours of being done, I had trouble with my chocolate seizing, my macaroons stuck to the parchment (and I think I didn’t beat the whites enough, and might have overcooked them, cuz they cracked and crumbled), and personally, I thought the whole thing was too rich(was almost assuredly my choice of 54% cacao).
So the second time, I made a few changes: First, I poured the macaroon batter onto a piece of greased parchment in one sheet. That way, I slid it off onto a cutting board, but my first desired wafer, then was able to identically match each one after with my “template,” no ruler needed. Second, I used just a scosh less sugar in the macaroon. Third, I beat the eggs better, much, much stiffer, which created a better macaroon. Fourth, I used 75% cacao, which complimented the almond macaroon much better and wasn’t too sweet.
My parents couldn’t believe their eyes with this torte. The phone call I received the next day contained words like “unbelievable” and “professional.”
Thanks, Deb!

By: Keren

Keren — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 03:01:06 +0000

Not to sound smug, but I made this for second Seder and it was UH-MAZING. I made a few modifications (used half and half instead of water in the frosting, made about 1/5 of it using milk chococolate for a “surprise” middle layer, put down a bottom layer of chocolate under the first macaroon layer so it was truly encased, used brickled slivered almonds for the outside) and took a few shortcuts (used almond meal from TJ’s, microwaved the frosting, did it all a week ago, then wrapped it and shoved it in the freezer). And it was perfect. Rich and sweet, but not overly so due to the (relative) lightness of the macaroon layers. All I’d change in the future is to toast the almond meal before making the macaroons, just to add a bit of roasty nut flavor.

I didn’t use any grease on the parchment. No problems. I did burn one of the sets of macaroons on the first try, though–gotta watch them carefully, and in my oven anyway, bake them on the top level.

It cuts and serves beautifully, by the way–looks professional, and kept so well between baking and serving. Another SK hit! Thanks, Deb!

By: artemis

artemis — Sat, 07 Apr 2012 22:47:06 +0000

I made this for our seder too–a huge hit! I baked on ungreased parchment and had no problems…slid right off. My chocolate did seize so I took the advice above and added a half cup of cream, setting it briefly back on the stove to warm, which did the trick. Nice and spreadable ganache that firmed up beautifully after half an hour or so. I used a pretty freeform approach to the macaroons and just guesstimated four roughly equal rectangles, mainly because I was trying to do some of this with a five-month-old in my other arm. Not ideal but totally workable if you’re short on time or arms. Overall, a fantastic cake that’s going on our (very short) go-to Pesach dessert list–thanks!

By: haruspex

haruspex — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 21:26:07 +0000

Well, I made it! With raspberry preserves added. My chocolate frosting was also too thick and lumpifying to spread well, and at each layer I added (thanks to ideas above) more simple syrup, tiny dabs of butter, and finally a little milk. It is decidedly raggedy but still Fancy. Now, can I get it from Brooklyn to our seder in Union Square without destroying it?

Oh, the layers came off my one silicone sheet easily; the other pan, with parchment, stuck a bit. I removed them while the layers were still warm and flexible, and the one that really fell to bits is hidden away inside the cake.

Better get on the road.

By: Tamar

Tamar — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 16:33:58 +0000

Chag Sameach, Deb! I bookmarked this recipe ages ago and made it today for the Seder tomorrow. A few notes I had that might be helpful, even if this recipe is two years old:
- I took to Kate’s advice and did not spray the parchment. This had mixed results – 3 of the layers peeled off easily, the fourth did not. It broke into a few pieces, but luckily this is easily covered up in the assembly.
- My family does not keep kosher as for dairy/meat so I could have made this with cream – but alas, I only saw the comment now, after finishing. So while mine is paerve, unnecessarily so, I believe I could have had an easier time with cream.
- And lastly, my frosting was extremely difficult to maneuver – I used 10 oz. Fruibel 74%, and 10 oz. Fruibel 57%. It spread wonderfully at first, but as I went to frost the whole thing it had cooled down to an almost chocolate-spread-like consistency, far too hard for the delicate macaron layers to handle. As a result, my dessert looks a tad messy – especially the sides, which were already crumbly from the trimming – but I’ll fix it up tomorrow with some ganache all over, and then the toasted almonds. I can not wait to try it!

By: Alison

Alison — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 21:24:29 +0000

This was wonderful! Perfect for a gluten-free dessert.

By: Anna

Anna — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 03:36:04 +0000

Made this today for my birthday cake—I didn’t spray the parchment paper and it was fine! I also cut my final macaroons down to 9″ due to my lack of a long platter and ended up making another layer out of the end pieces (this left me slightly short on frosting though!). I also added really pretty heart shapes on top of the final cake by making a cutout of parchment paper and sprinkling crushed slivered almonds into the holes…this turned out quite lovely. (There are photos on my blog of the hearts).
Another thought–as the macaroons fit into the rectangle “stencil”, could this perhaps be made into any other shape (hearts, stars, etc)? Thanks again for such a great recipe Deb!

By: Aly

Aly — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 13:38:56 +0000

Made this yesterday for a birthday celebration tonight, looks great. I found putting the batter in a ziploc and piping it onto the stencils worked really well.

By: Kristin

Kristin — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 07:22:19 +0000

I just made this beautiful torte but wished I had read the comments first. My macaroon layers came out great but my chocolate seized! I used 3/4 Ghiradelli bittersweet chips and 1/4 Ikea dark chocolate. I suspect the chips are the culprit in the seizing. Don’t they add something to the chips to help them maintain their shape when heated?

By: Sarah B

Sarah B — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 19:10:43 +0000

Regarding spraying the parchment paper:

I didn’t and I had no problem.

Once they were completely cool, I cut each piece of parchment in half (between the layers), flipped the four pieces over and peeled the paper back.